THE SCOJ'E OF IOWA HISTOKY 



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1-OmS PELZER 




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HISTORY ANO POLITICS 

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SI-AIF, HtSTORICAI. SOCIETY OF IOWA 



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TEE SCOPE OF IOWA HISTORY 



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THE SCOPE or IOWA HISTORY 

To define the scope of the history of Iowa by the funda- 
mental elements of time, place, and persons is to make an 
extension of or addition to that conception which is in com- 
mon observation the narrower point of view. The history 
of Iowa can never be restricted by the artificial bounds of 
the State, but must ever be regarded as a resultant of ex- 
ternal as well as internal forces. As the geology of Iowa 
has meaning only as the carboniferous and the glacial pe- 
riods are studied and interpreted in their relations to other 
periods, so the history of Iowa is an integral part of the 
history of the Valley of the Mississippi and must be inter- 
preted in these larger settings of time and space. 

Where the pre-historic ends in Iowa can not be defined 
with precision. Anthropology, ethnology, and archaeology 
now and then tender a parcel of knowledge of the remote 
past. Copper implements, stone knives, a rude cloth, and 
carved pipes found in mounds pronounce the existence of 
an early culture. But the origin of this people, their num- 
ber, their government, their customs, and their decline are 
questions which the absence of adequate and satisfactory 
records do not yet permit the historian to solve or to an- 
swer. Likewise the early life of the Indian tribes — their 
origin, their development, and their social life — has not 
yet fully emerged from the haze of conjecture, legend, and 
tradition into the light of reliable historical knowledge. 

Solid historical ground is reached when Father Jacques 
Marquette and Louis Joliet land on Iowa soil on June 25, 
1673. With bible and crucifix the black-gowned mission- 



ary visits the Illinois Indians in Iowa ; and the narrative of 
his journal glows with religious fervor and missionary 
zeal. The account of this first descent of the Father of 
Waters by the white man expresses itself in descriptions 
of the scenery, the flora, and the animal life on its banks. 
Marquette notes with care the fishes in its waters; the 
sight of wingless swans and buffaloes greets him; the cli- 
mate, latitude, and the topography of the region find a 
place in his narrative; and with much detail he describes 
the organization, the customs, the appearance, and the hos- 
pitality of Indian tribes. 

This voyage of Marquette marks the beginning of a pe- 
riod of exploration. Other explorers come to the Missis- 
sippi Valley. Julien Dubuque becomes the first settler up- 
on Iowa soil, and the romances as well as the history of 
the Mississippi Valley are begun. The history of juris- 
dictions over Iowa, of settlements, of wilderness-winning, 
of government, law, institutions, wealth, population, and 
homes constitutes the thread around which the story of 
Iowa is woven. 

Geographically Iowa is situated in the Mississippi Val- 
ley, and the history of the one will supplement that of the 
other. Both the elements and the setting are western. 
Iowa was a section as well as a reservoir for the waves of 
early migration which peopled the West. This inter-rela- 
tion of forces and events and atmosphere and scenes be- 
comes a part of the history of Iowa as well as a part of its 
destiny. Likewise the story of California must be built 
upon the foundation of its western location and immigra- 
tion ; nor can the history of Massachusetts be divorced from 
its New England location and its sombre atmosphere of 
Puritanism. 

Politically, Iowa has been under several sovereign juris- 



dictions, each of which has left historical traces upon the 
area. During the possession of the region by France for 
eighty-seven years Iowa was a wilderness and the history 
of this time is made principally by Canadian voyageurs 
and explorers. Thirty-four years' existence under the flag 
of Spain has left the history of several notable land grants ; 
Spanish names have been left in Iowa; the white man's re- 
lations with the Indians in Iowa begin; and the fur trade 
and the lead industry are initiated by Julien Dubuque. 
Again the Iowa country comes for three years under the 
dominion of France ; and its cession, as a part of Louisiana, 
to the United States in 1804 marks the beginning of a juris- 
diction which survives to-day. 

Under the American flag Iowa's jurisdictional lineage 
begins with the Upper Province of Louisiana. Over this 
area the laws and jurisdiction of the Indiana Territory 
were extended in 1804, and thus the aegis of the Northwest 
Ordinance was first extended over Iowa. The Territories 
of Louisiana and Missouri then exercised subordinate juris- 
diction over Iowa until 1821, when for nearly thirteen years 
it remained a political orphan. Then for four years it was 
under the laws and authority of the Territories of Michigan 
and Wisconsin. The experience and history of these vari- 
ous subordinate jurisdictions later become crystallized in 
the Organic Act of the Territory of Iowa. The long de- 
scent of this political estate bears the marks of many trans- 
fers and offers a fertile field for the comparative study of 
Territorial jurisdictions. 

Iowa history — as the history of Iowa or the subjective 
aspect of the subject — is concurrent in its beginning with 
the inception of Iowa as a body politic. Then the internal 
forces of history act and interact upon the external factors 
of time, location, and jurisdictions. The settlement of 



Iowa in 1833 (the common date for the opening of Iowa) 
marks the beginning of social forces in Iowa — population, 
law, industry, custom, and the adaptation of experiences to 
new conditions. Every phase of history then has made its 
appearance — institutional, industrial, political, etc. 

On the institutional side Iowa furnishes a rich field for 
the study of political governmental forms and experimenta- 
tions through the agency of political parties. Political 
creeds and methods are transplanted from other States and 
are made to respond to the democratic and the pioneer ele- 
ments. The response to the influences of the national party 
can be traced. The origin, growth, triumph, decline, and 
decay of political parties find illustration in Iowa. The 
operation of political party machinery can be observed from 
the humblest voter to the State convention, and from the 
ordinary broadside to the daily newspaper. Through the 
medium of political parties there are presented the tests 
and the defects of a code of fundamental law for the Com- 
monwealth 

The writing of the history of the church in Iowa like- 
wise invites the historian. The transplanting, growth, and 
expression of religious creeds can be noticed, the number 
and the increase of various sects and their location, their 
colonizing tendencies, and the governmental organization of 
various sects can be studied. The circuit riders have a his- 
tory of their own; while early places of worship, the erec- 
tion of churches, and the socializing influence of the church 
furnish additional subjects for study. The mere mention 
of the Mormons, the Dunkards, the Latter Day Saints, the 
Inspirationists, and the Amish Mennonites indicates many 
possibilities for historical study. 

Upon the very general subject of education the field for 
study in Iowa is vast. What was the professional equip- 



ment of the earliest schoolmaster? What was his salary 
and his standing in the community? The zeal of the early 
pioneers for education should be told. The early courses 
of study, the financial support of schools, the powers and 
duties of the earliest school officials, the social power of 
the school in the neighborhood, the general administration 
and supervision of the schools invite further study. The 
history of the high school in Iowa alone would make a 
monograph. 

Higher education in Iowa offers other routes of inquiry. 
The origin and development of the various colleges, their 
struggles, their financial endowments, their curricula, their 
students, and the past influence of the colleges in the edu- 
cational world may be studied with profit The adminis- 
tration and support of education by the State for higher 
education as well as for the common schools suggest other 
subjects for inquiry. Much history is also wrapped up in 
the administrative and legislative records of the State insti- 
tutions. 

What were the social customs, habits, and pleasures of 
the early pioneers? How far did these operate as educa- 
tive, aesthetic, or moral agencies? The novelist, taking 
Iowa pioneer conditions for a back-ground, would be re- 
quired to be cognizant of the amusements, the manners, the 
etiquette, the dress, and the nomenclature of pioneer social 
life and events. He must needs know their festal days and 
celebrations, their attitude toward the church, and even 
their excesses, their indulgences, and their vices. Who can 
estimate the influence of the early spelling-schools and the 
pioneer lyceum debating societies? 

Itself the conservator of a vast amount of historical ma- 
terial, the Iowa newspaper as an institution well deserves 
an historian to chronicle its beginnings, its early editors. 



and the struggles of its first days. The financial side can 
claim attention, its influence as an agency in party machin- 
ery has been enormous, and its influence upon morals, re- 
ligion, education, and general intelligence can hardly be 
overestimated. Briefly suggested, there is much history 
between the pioneer four-page weekly issued from a Frank- 
lin press and the modern fifty-page Sunday edition. 

Another social institution — that of marriage — arouses 
a multitude of questions. How were marriages regulated 
in Iowa before the inauguration of civil government ? What 
marriage laws did Iowa inherit from its former jurisdic- 
tions? What were the laws on divorce and upon the wife's 
distributive share in property? The average age at which 
the pioneers married, the number of marriages, and the 
number and causes of divorces would become interesting 
historical facts when justa-posed to the statistics of more 
modern times. 

A rich and abundant harvest will be yielded by excur- 
sions into the political and administrative history of Iowa. 
Here are recorded the beginnings of civil administration. 
Illustrations of popular sovereignty are found in the claim 
clubs; the creation of counties, townshii^s, and municipali- 
ties follows. Where are the precursors of the various 
township and county officers? The history of the justice of 
the peace or of the county commissioners would shed many 
side-lights upon administrative history. Thousands of 
financial reports, vouchers, tax receipts, bonds, etc., in 
county vaults could be rejuvenated into county financial 
histories. 

A welcome should also be extended to the village histo- 
rian who sees more than prose and hears more than hum- 
drum in the beginnings of towns and villages. How were 
the early town sites laid out and what assistance was ex- 



tended by the legislature? The incorporation of the town, 
the inauguration of its government, its response to local 
conditions are subjects that will grow in interest and im- 
portance as they are studied. Not a few cities in Iowa 
were settled by groups from other counties. The influence 
of the early towns on morals, politics, religion, social life, 
and trade afford other branches for investigation. The 
man, who, with the prophetic vision of a Bradford, pre- 
served the early town annals is worthy of both honor and 
praise. 

A store of material upon the administrative history of 
Iowa is contained in the Public Archives of the State. The 
records of scores of boards, commissions, agents, and of- 
ficers are preserved in reports, oaths of office, resignations, 
letters, petitions, and commissions. There may be found 
the history of the Fort Madison Penitentiary; in another 
place can be found the material of a contested election; 
maps show the labors of boundary commissioners; the 
records in the State Superintendent's office will show the 
growth of Iowa's educational system; and in another place 
will be found the reports of agents to negotiate loans or to 
select lands for the State. 

In the legislative journals are to be found the parlia- 
mentary history of hundreds and thousands of bills and 
laws. Eesolutions and minority committee reports throw 
light upon the attitude of the legislature in respect to the 
great national questions of slavery, homestead laws, finan- 
cial policy, and the tariff. Election contests are abundant, 
while dramatic stories of Senatorial elections are some- 
times found behind the meagre minutes in the journals. 
In the Congressional records, likewise, may be found scores 
of memorials, petitions, and bills from Iowa. Representa- 
tives in Congress present the attitude of their constituents 



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upon great issues. And much of the financial history of the 
Territory of Iowa is contained in the records and laws of 
Congress. 

An adequate history of the Indians of Iowa has not yet 
appeared. Long chapters can be devoted to their inter-tribal 
wars. Their organizations merit further description. Their 
migrations, settlements, and industries, suggest other sub- 
jects. The Indian's relations with the "Whites stimulate 
a host of inquiries. How did the government secure title 
to the Indian lands? What authority did the government 
exercise over them? How were treaties with the Indians 
consummated? How were the treaties kept? What were 
the operations of the early Indian traders in Iowa? At 
Washington the archives hold hundreds of reports from 
the Superintendents of Indian Affairs in the Iowa country. 
The various Indian outbreaks and wars alone would make 
a long story. The westering of the Indian tribes repre- 
sents the force and volume of the western wave of pioneer 
migration. 

Other racial groups in Iowa have histories. Much has 
already been written upon the history of the Scandinavian 
population in Iowa. Much unwritten history still reposes 
in the story of the Germans of Iowa. Other groups are the 
Jews, the Bohemians, and the Hungarians; while at Pella 
and in northwestern Iowa are large groups of descendants 
of the loyal followers of William of Orange. Of what po- 
litical theories were these peoples the apostles? Why did 
they settle in Iowa? How have they responded to the pio- 
neer agricultural environments? How have they inter- 
mingled with other races or how far have they retained 
their racial groups and characteristics? How far have 
they been assimilated in the political, industrial, religious, 
and institutional phases of American life? 



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Out of the military record also spring a large number of 
questions. Indian wars and outbreaks have already been 
suggested. Iowa's part in the Mexican War remains to be 
described. What was the attitude of Iowa toward secession? 
The raising, organizing, and equipment of Iowa troops in 
the Civil War represents a strenuous period of the State's 
history. The valor and bravery of Iowa soldiers upon the 
field will appeal to the historian as well as to the eulogist. 
The attitude of Iowa upon the great post-bellum questions 
can also claim a place in Iowa's record of achievements. 
History has already decided that Iowa had a great "War 
Governor". 

The history of Iowa would of course be incomplete with- 
out a narration of the achievements of Iowa's men in na- 
tional affairs. National as well as State history is inter- 
woven about such names as Eobert Lucas, Augustus Cae- 
sar Dodge, James W. Grimes, Samuel J. Kirkwood, John 
A. Kasson, Grenville M. Dodge, James Wilson, Justice 
Samuel F. Miller, and William B. Allison. They are types 
and representatives of great issues and achievements which 
have the background of a Mississippi Valley region. 

An industrial history of Iowa, too, will some day be writ- 
ten. This would devote chapters to the early lead mines 
the early means of travel and transportation, the construc- 
tion of military and wagon roads, bridges, and ferries 
The stage-driver, the ferryman, the mail contractor, and 
the river pilots have all done their share in the early his- 
tory of the State. It might well be explained, too, that 
there is a connection between the location of the river cities 
and early navigation in Iowa. 

A history of agriculture in Iowa would concern itself with 
the earliest improvements of fencing, buildings, orchards 
and methods of tilling. The marketing and the consump- 



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tion of farm products would suggest other subjects. The 
use and development of machinery upon farms, the effects 
of railroads, social life upon the farms, educational and re- 
ligious advantages, would furnish other avenues for study. 
Belated subjects would be the origin and development of 
the industries of stock-raising, dairying, milling, and min- 
ing. 

The subject of railroads is large in its capacity for his- 
torical treatment : the early land grants, the competition of 
various sections for trans-State lines, the legislative his- 
tory of early railroads in Congress concern the beginnings 
of the railways in Iowa. State laws and taxation offer ad- 
ditional subjects. The influence of the railroads upon poli- 
ties has been great and is intimately connected with the 
regulation of railroads by the State. Finally the trans- 
cendent influence of the railways in the development of the 
mining, agricultural, and industrial resources can not be 
overlooked by the historian. 

Banks and banking, child labor, insurance, manufactur- 
ing, and the various trades and professions may serve as 
historical subjects. The mention of express, telegraph, and 
telephone companies indicates further possibilities in treat- 
ing the industrial history of Iowa. 

But the field is great and the subjects are infinite in 
number. Although Iowa history is essentially local in char- 
acter, let no one disparage its interest and value. The 
geologist examines the minutest particles of rock and may 
find a measure of beautiful granite or discover a rich vein 
of ore. Close examination of rough material may reveal a 
wonderful and instructive story of the life of the past. 
Microscopic examinations by the biologist will give classi- 
fications of the orders of life. So the study of local history 
through the perspective of National history will furnish 



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the finer fibers, the delicate colorings, and the durable mate- 
rial which are woven into a great National pattern. Local 
history must study minutely. It must study the people's 
accomplishments and defeats, their mistakes and their tri- 
umphs, their joys and sorrows and their ideals — for this 
is humanity, and local history is the record of humanity. 

Louis Pelzeb 
Montana State Normal College 
Dillon, Montana 



